The kimono-clad old man stood in place for a long time without speaking. Yusei felt a bit repentant, thinking he might have dealt too heavy a blow to the other.
However, just as this repentance surfaced, the old man opposite burst into hearty laughter.
"As expected of the disciple I, Shigemiya Koken, have taken a liking to. It's good to be a genius, very good."
The kimono-clad old man's face was radiant with excitement, full of delight.
A servant approached at that moment, bowing respectfully.
"Koken-sama, the evening banquet is ready."
"Good, you may withdraw for now."
After the servant left, Koken looked at Yusei.
He patted Yusei's shoulder and sighed, "Your talent is something I've never heard of before. Perhaps a martial arts prodigy like you only appears once every few hundred years. But your physical fitness is too poor. Right now, all the muscles in your body must be trembling, exceptionally sore, right?"
Yusei nodded. This was indeed a weakness, and he planned to focus on improving his stamina.
Moreover, he hadn't received the system mission's reward for this time yet. He didn't know if there was a way to enhance his stamina within it.
If not, then he could only rely on daily exercise.
"There's no hurry about this… take it slowly. Come, let's eat first."
Koken, beaming with joy, was very happy and walked ahead, leading the way to the room where the evening banquet was already prepared.
The banquet was extremely sumptuous and, in a way, truly broadened Yusei's horizons.
He had never eaten such a lavish Japanese meal before.
In his previous life, his family was fairly well-off, and he had been to high-end Japanese restaurants. But compared to now, the Japanese restaurant he went to before was simply inferior.
After the banquet ended, Yusei was formally accepted under the Hiten Mitsurugi-ryu school.
This banquet also served as the master acceptance ceremony.
Koken taught Yusei a set of meditation techniques and required him not only to exercise daily but also to meditate every night before sleep.
According to him, practicing the sword also meant practicing the mind. A strong mental state was equivalent to deep mastery in the way of the sword.
Yusei naturally agreed. If something could help him become stronger, he wouldn't refuse.
Bidding farewell to the massive ancient-style Japanese mansion, Yusei took the train back.
Yusei felt that today's experiences were somewhat absurd. He had just suddenly wanted to check out a dojo and copy a few martial techniques.
But then he inexplicably ended up challenging a dojo, followed by taking a master and learning a swordsmanship style?
Yet Yusei had to admit it was indeed quite lucky. Hiten Mitsurugi-ryu was truly a powerful swordsmanship system.
It balanced offense and defense, with its core being Shinsoku. Its speed went without saying.
Koken's mansion wasn't too far from Yusei's home, and it took about twenty minutes by train.
He originally planned to go straight back, but considering Shiro had been home alone all day and she must be very lonely-
So, on the way, Yusei stopped by a pastry shop and bought some sweets that girls like, intending to bring some back for Shiro.
But just then, his sharp perception noticed something pink flash by in a nearby alley.
'That was... a girl's hair?'
Yusei noticed that it seemed a girl had been gagged with a cloth over her mouth and nose.
Instantly, the word 'kidnapping' appeared in his mind.
Without much hesitation, Yusei immediately headed towards that direction.
Entering the alley, Yusei saw at a glance a man in black holding a cloth over a pink-haired girl's face.
Seeing the girl's struggling movements grow weaker, clearly there was some kind of drug on that cloth.
The man in black clearly hadn't expected a boy to suddenly appear. Immediately, the cloth left the girl's face, and the man himself, without any hesitation, charged directly towards Yusei.
His movement was agile, extremely fierce, and he also pulled out a rubber baton from his chest.
"Kid, you've seen something you shouldn't have."
The man in black spoke in an extremely cold, low voice, as if intending to silence Yusei.
Yusei wasn't panicked. He looked calmly at the approaching figure, his mind recalling the move he had copied from Koken earlier.
The name of the technique was unknown, and perhaps, it was just a casual strike from Koken. But Yusei gave it a name.
Ryugasen! (T/N: Dragon Fang Flash!)